There are many instances where it is desired to know a movement of an object in relation to another object. Known tracker technologies include inertial, magnetic, ultrasonic, and camera-based optical systems. These approaches, however, have been developed primarily for head worn displays (HWD), for example, military helmets, and tend to be expensive, overly bulky, and can have latency issues.
One known use of movement tracker technology involves the aviation industry. As the operation of vehicles such as airplanes becomes more complex, it is preferable that the vehicle operator, e.g., the flight crew, be attentive and receives information in a timely manner to ensure proper operation. One method for providing information is a near-to-eye (NTE) display system. Head-tracker technology is a key aspect of a head-worn, or a NTE display, system, especially when it is desired to provide the functionality of a conformal head-up-display (HUD) in a compact NTE form factor. A NTE display system is a type of HWD system which uses, e.g., glasses, a visor, a helmet, or a cap to place a display in front of one or both eyes. Typically, the NTE display is semi-transparent, including, for example, an optical combiner element with collimating optics and a microdisplay (such as a liquid crystal display (LCD), liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS) display, or organic light emitting diode (OLED) display) so the information presented to the user on the NTE display can be superimposed on the visible scene. For example, a NTE display can provide a representative view of a scene outside the vehicle for use by the vehicle's operator even in poor visibility conditions, such as thick fog conditions
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a system and method for tracking movement of an object which allows for a simple, small, and light weight tracking assembly. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the exemplary embodiments will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the foregoing technical field and background.